The Homo Novus Evolution
by ChasedByTheShadows
Summary: "Eden, I swear one of these days you're going to make me lose my mind." Sheldon/OC
1. Chapter 1

**A Homo Novus Evolution**

**Chapter 1**

This small, dingy apartment building was as familiar a place to Dr. Sheldon Cooper as his own upscale dwelling place on the other side of town. The contrasts between the two were starkly evident, some even bordering on outrageous. The structure before him was comprised of rough concrete, cracked in several places whereas 2311 Los Robles was a tall, brick structure, lacking wild vines climbing up the sides. Several windows in this place were boarded, and the glass on most of the rest was so unclean that Sheldon had to avert his eyes.

If one were to ask any of his friends, they would say that Sheldon wouldn't be caught dead in a place like this. And yet, here he was. Of course, none of them knew that.

The lobby, he supposed, could be considered somewhat tidy compared to the rest of the building. Only two of the mailbox doors were falling off their hinges, and the front desk was relatively free of clutter. The only clues to the real poverty within were the woman at the desk and the putrid smell of smoke and body odor.

The woman, who "looked after" the apartment building was unclean and underdressed. Her ever-present cigarette vexed Sheldon to no end, but he had learned not to question her about it. Several months ago, when he had been unwise enough to demand that she put it out, the unclean woman—whose nametag said Irene, though that certainly couldn't be relied upon—had grabbed him by the front of the shirt and threatened to use his face as an ashtray from then on if he bothered her again. After that, every time he walked through the lobby Irene leered at him from behind her barren desk.

Sheldon needn't have reminded himself that his reason for being here was worth every bit of discomfort he felt as he made his way up to the third floor. The door to 3-C was as old and decrepit as all its surroundings, but what was inside was far, far better.

_Knock, knock, knock. _"Eden."

_Knock, knock, knock. _"Eden."

_Knock, knock, knock. _"Eden."

The second the door was opened, the pleasant scent of vanilla filled his nose, replacing the odors outside the apartment. Eden herself had a glow about her that brought a smile to Sheldon's face. Her dark golden hair fell to her shoulders in clean, gentle curls and the look in her kindly, tired brown eyes filled Sheldon with a warmth no woman had ever been able to create.

"Sheldon," she said, "I was wondering if you'd gotten lost." A not-so-subtle English accent graced her words, bringing a smile to Sheldon's face as he stepped into the apartment, closing the door behind him.

"I've been here exactly seventy-six times, Eden. Once a week since the first time you brought me here, and I memorized the route from the bus stop that we got off at that time. I don't understand how you could think that I would have lost my way."

Eden smiled, quite accustomed to the strange man before her. "Of course, Sheldon, how could I be so silly? Now, come sit down and have some fresh vanilla pound cake. You came at a good time, I just finished it. How's that sound?"

"It sounds lovely." Sheldon followed her into the tiny kitchen, where a delectable-looking cake sat at the ready. "Eden, may I ask you something?"

"Of course, love. What is it?"

"I find myself constantly at odds with Priya. Normally, I would just shun her, as I would with any person that vexed me. In this case however, as she is Leonard's girlfriend and Koothrappali's sister, I cannot. How am I to continue to tolerate her when the very sight of her, as cliché as it sounds, causes my blood to boil?"

Eden bit her lip, as she always did when she was deep in thought. Sheldon watched her as she cut him a slice of pound cake. There were so many things about her that set Eden apart from other women he knew. She was not stunningly beautiful, but rather cute like Wolowitz's fiancée. She preferred loose-fitting, plain clothing over the colorful sleeveless tops that Penny favored. Eden's tiny apartment was always clean as well, something that Sheldon greatly appreciated.

"When I was a little girl, Sister Rose always told me that we should pray for those who upset us, and I'm sure your mother would say the same. Since you don't follow your mother's religion, though, the best advice I can give you is to simply ignore her. Perhaps if you make it seem as though she doesn't bother you, it will eventually be true."

"So," he said, retrieving a fork from the drawer, "you're suggesting that I simply…let it go? Doesn't really seem like an aggressive strike, Eden."

She laughed and reached up to run a hand through his hair. Her laugh was a soft, happy sound and it never failed to make the corners of his own mouth twitch into a smile. Then, just as suddenly, his eyes softened and he took a step closer to her. "Eden," he said quietly, leaning over to rest his forehead against hers, letting all the feelings she caused flow through him, "I swear one of these days you're going to make me lose my mind."

She wrapped her arms around his neck. "Didn't you tell me once that I already have?"

Eden remembered the Sheldon Cooper she first met, more than two years prior. Touching her like this, holding her, even being in such close proximity to another human being would have repulsed him. She recalled the look of horror and disgust on his face when he first set eyes on her apartment building, and the great stiffness and terror that overtook him the first time she embraced him.

It had taken so long to gain his trust. Now, as they stood in her kitchen and she placed her lips softly on his, he was so many things to her. He was still the same difficult, idiosyncratic genius he had always been, but for her he was different. He was a gentleman, a place to lose herself, and undeniably her best friend.

And she, Eden Foster, was the only woman who had ever known the love of Dr. Sheldon Cooper.

_(A/N: Hello all! So, if Sheldon seems OOC, he should. This is an ending point for the story and we'll work up to him being this way. Bear with me! In regards to the last line, I know some of you are going to say that his mother, sister, and Meemaw all knew Sheldon's love, but I'm referring to romantic love—and as much as I LOVE Shamy, Sheldon said it himself. There is "a relationship of the mind," and I intend to keep it that way for this story. This is also my way of replacing A Simple Chemical Reaction, which I intend to abandon. Thanks for your time and please review!) _


	2. Chapter 2

**The Homo Novus Evolution**

**Chapter 2**

**(A/N: Shoot me a review. Just takes a few seconds and makes this girl happy :P Thank you much.)**

Perhaps their story is best told from the very beginning of it.

Back then, things were much, much different. They had transformed so much, in fact, that anyone looking at the two times side by side would not be able to forge a connection between them. It had all started one not-so-special, rainy day at the University of Phoenix in Pasadena, California, where a student had a chance encounter with a visiting physicist giving a lecture...

…...

Eden pulled the key out of the lock with some difficulty, having to shake the doorknob a bit before it would come loose. The lock on her dorm room had irked her since the day she moved in. She would have complained about it, but a foreign exchange student on a full scholarship, who had been given a single dorm to boot, wasn't in a position to do much complaining.

Especially a girl like Eden.

It was raining a bit, which she didn't necessarily mind. She had grown incredibly used to that kind of weather growing up in England.

The trek to her sixth and final class of the day wasn't a particularly long one, but she was dreading it nonetheless. A two-hour lecture on literary psychology—though she loved the topic, the professor was a different story entirely—followed by a six-hour shift at work wasn't exactly her ideal sort of evening.

With her tiny umbrella barely shielding her from the drizzling rain, Eden made her way toward the large white building across campus where her class was being held.

People moved rather sluggishly through the rain, as though its mere presence physically weighed them down. Eden herself, having lived in the States long enough to learn to love the sunshine, always did feel just a bit more tired when the sun was hidden behind dark grey clouds.

Mixed in with the sea of college students, one person, looking direly out of place, caught Eden's eye. He was tall and incredibly lanky. He wasn't ugly, by any means, but the hideous plaid suit didn't exactly help his appearance. The man looked rather annoyed, though she couldn't tell if it was because he was trapped in the middle of a mob of students, or because he was caught in the rain. Behind his irritation though, she could see that he looked just the tiniest bit lost.

_No one else seems to be helping him_, she thought. _I might as well._

It took some measure of effort for Eden to make her way over to the man, but she managed to get there fairly quickly, tapping him on the shoulder.

"Excuse me," she said. "Sir?"

He turned around, agitated, and looked at Eden skeptically. She flinched away from the scrutiny, as she always did with such things, but put a smile on her face anyway.

"Yes, can I help you?" he asked. He looked at the young woman before him, taking her in. She had hair the colour of dark gold (though, given, since it was slightly dampened by the rain, it probably looked darker than it actually was) that fell in gentle waves, and big brown eyes. She looked at him curiously and, though he couldn't understand why, a bit nervously.

"You looked a bit lost," she said. "Can I help you find anything?"

Sheldon took note of her accent and continued to look at her for a moment. "Yes," he finally answered, "I actually am having a bit of trouble finding my way. I'm Dr. Sheldon Cooper, here to give a lecture on theoretical physics."

Eden nodded. Some of the students in her resident building were studying physics, and had been talking—with a measure of dread—about the upcoming lecture of Dr. Cooper.

She pointed behind Dr. Cooper, toward a collection of brick buildings near the corner of campus. "The physics buildings are that way. I'm not sure which building you'll be giving your lecture in, but the main office building is the largest one there, towards the front. They'll be able to direct you to where you're supposed to be."

Sheldon nodded in gratitude, if rather sharply. "Thank you, Miss—"

"Oh, sorry, how rude of me. My name's Eden Foster." She stuck out her hand politely, and Sheldon gazed at it for a moment.

"Yes, well thank you, Miss Foster." Without another word, he turned on his heel and walked briskly towards the physics department office. Eden watched him go, moving rather easily now that the sea of students had begun to thin.

He filled her thoughts as she headed for her lecture.

…...

When Eden arrived at work the rain, thankfully, had calmed down a bit. If her uniform had gotten wet, she would have had to deal with being uncomfortable through her whole shift, and she would be working until eleven o'clock that night.

The diner just outside of campus was one of the few relatively close places to eat. Eden had applied the moment she arrived in Pasadena and actually got along with the owner, a woman in her late thirties named Leah, very well. She gave Eden all the best hours where she could make good tips, and had no problem letting her off when she had ridiculous amounts of schoolwork or was ill.

"Hey, Eden!" Leah called from behind the counter when she walked in. "There were only a few customers scattered here and there and the other waiter on duty, a fellow student of Eden's named Joshua, was taking care of them.

"Good evening, Leah," said Eden with a smile. "How's it looking tonight?"

"It's fairly slow right now, because of the weather I'm assuming, but I expect it'll pick up soon. I have to run and pick up my daughters from their piano lesson in a few minutes here. After Josh is done with these tables I'm going to put him on register. Do you think you can handle the tables after that?"

"Not a problem," Eden replied, smiling. "Who's in the kitchen tonight?"

"Ray," Leah said, grabbing her purse from under the counter and her coat and umbrella from the hook. She called over her shoulder as she went out the door. "I'll see you guys tomorrow!" Eden and Joshua waved and returned to their work. About fifteen minutes later, both of Joshua's tables left and the diner was empty for a few moments.

"So, Josh," said Eden, straightening the menus to give herself something to do, "you're a physics student. Did you go to Dr. Cooper's lecture today?"

Josh made a face. "Ugh, yeah. He's giving three today, each of them an hour long. He should be ending the third one right about now. I was at the first and it was _awful_. I'll be perfectly all right if I never see Dr. Cooper again."

Eden lifted her eyebrows. "Oh yeah? Why's that?"

"Let me think of three words that describe Dr. Cooper," replied Josh in mock thoughtfulness. "Let's see...condescending, infuriating, and...oh, yeah, complete and utter asshole."

"That last one was four words, Josh," said Eden, laughing. "He couldn't be _that_ bad, could he?"

Josh mimed vomiting over the counter and Eden slapped him playfully on the arm. "Seriously though, Eden, he was horrible. How'd you know about him anyway? You're an English Lit major. I didn't think you'd bother knowing about theoretical physics lectures."

Eden shrugged. "Some of the girls in my building were talking about it last week. Oh, and I saw him today and gave him directions."

"Poor you," said Josh.

"Well, he didn't try to bite my head off or anything. I thought I heard someone say he was supposed to be like incredibly brilliant or something."

"Oh, he's brilliant all right," said Josh. "He's made some huge advances in the field of physics. Not that it makes him any less of an asshole. Like I said, I'm content _never_ seeing that guy again." Just as Josh finished talking the bell rang over the door, signaling the arrival of a customer.

Eden smirked and bit her lip to keep from busting out in laughter. It was none other than Dr. Sheldon Cooper. Josh visibly bit back a groan. "Sorry, Josh. Looks like its fate."

Oh, and how right she was.

"Good evening, Dr. Cooper," said Josh, forcing a smile onto his face. It looked more like someone was pulling all the hairs from his head one by one. "It's good to see you again. May I just say that your lecture today was...very enlightening."

Sheldon looked at the boy. He didn't recognize him, but that wasn't surprising. He rarely saw enough talent in the students at his lectures to actually remember their appearances. "Of course it was. Thank you." As Sheldon glanced around the room, however, he did see one person he recognized. It was the girl from earlier, Eden Foster. The one who had given him directions.

"Allow me to seat you, sir," said Joshua, leading Dr. Cooper to a table near the counter and next to a window.

"I think I'll be able to be comfortable in this seat," said Sheldon. "It's close enough to the kitchen that my food will come out quickly and at the proper temperature, and it's close to a window where I can take account of the weather conditions."

"You're...welcome?" Josh phrased it like a question, looking in confusion at the man before him. He quickly regained his bearings, shooting a glance at Eden. "I'll be going on my break, Dr. Cooper, but Eden over here will take good care of you."

"That will be fine, I suppose."

As Josh walked past her into the back of the diner, where the break room was, Eden couldn't resist digging an elbow into his stomach.

"Dr. Cooper," she said, putting a smile on. "So nice to run into you like this."

"We didn't really 'run into each other,' as you say. I simply stopped for sustenance at the food establishment where you are employed. I chose this place, not because I suspect it holds any real promise, but because it was the closest in proximity to the university and I could reach it without having to walk several blocks. So, when looking at all the factors, it was actually quite likely that we would see each other again." Sheldon paused for a breath, not noticing that Eden's eyebrows were now practically up in her hairline. "If anything," he continued, "the chance encounter would be, not this one, but the one we had earlier, when you gave me directions."

Eden took a deep breath. No wonder Josh didn't like this guy. At the very least, he could be described as exhausting. "Can I get you started with something to drink, Dr. Cooper?"

"I take it you understand my reasoning then," he said. "Very well, I'll take a diet Coke."

"Coming right up." While Eden was filling up a glass with Sheldon's drink, she stuck her head into the kitchen, where Josh was laughing with Ray about something.

"Ah, Eden," said Josh. "Having fun out there?"

She resisted the urge to throw something at him. "I hate you, Josh."

"Keep telling yourself that, Eden."

When Eden returned to Sheldon with his drink, she noticed that he was staring at her rather unabashedly. She blushed a little bit, not a fan of scrutiny, and nodded her head towards his menu. "Are you ready to order, Dr. Cooper?"

"Yes. I'll take a deluxe cheeseburger with everything but the meat and cheese on the side, and a large chocolate milkshake."

Eden had expected that this particular customer was going to have a difficult order. She forced herself to keep smiling as she scribbled his order down on her notepad, in addition to a small note apologizing to Ray. "So you'd like the pickles, lettuce, mayonnaise, ketchup and onions all on the side?"

"That is what I just said, correct?"

"Of course, Dr. Cooper. Coming right up."

As the minutes ticked by while Eden waited for Ray to finish Dr. Cooper's order, no other customers came in to give her even a measure of relief from the demanding physicist. Josh wasn't wrong about the demeanor of the man, but no matter how hard she tried, Eden couldn't seem to dislike him. Perhaps it just wasn't in her nature.

When she brought Sheldon his food, Eden tried to get away quickly, but he spoke before she could make an escape. "Miss Foster?"

"Yes, Dr. Cooper?"

"How did you know I was lost earlier?"

She stopped, curious in spite of herself, cocking her head to the side. She certainly hadn't expected him to ask that. If anything, she was anticipating another demand. Without meaning to, she smiled a bit. "I could see it in your eyes. They're very expressive."

"I see. Thank you. I'll take the bill in approximately twenty minutes."

"You're sure there's nothing else I can get you?" Eden mentally reprimanded herself for asking such an anserine question.

"No, that will be all."

_Thank God_.

Exactly twenty minutes later, Eden returned with the bill. It was only nine dollars, so she wasn't expecting a huge tip. So much for her ridiculous efforts with Dr. Cooper.

"Have a good night, sir!" she called after him, heading over to clean up his table. When she looked at it, she wasn't exactly surprised to see that he had stacked all of the dishes neatly, placing the silverware in a neat line next to them. The dirty napkin was folded into a little square and placed under the milkshake cup.

Eden grinned and shook her head, but her mouth fell open when she spotted the twenty dollar bill lying in the middle of the table. It was over a two hundred percent tip.

In spite of herself, Eden really hoped Dr. Cooper came in to the diner again.

…...

Just as Eden got back to her dorm building around 11:30, she was stopped in the front entry room by the student counselor assigned to the building.

"Eden!" she said.

"Hello, Anne. I didn't think you'd be up so late."

Anne, a young, pretty woman in her twenties, laughed. "Duty calls. Can I talk to you for a second?"

"Sure." Eden followed Anne into her office, sitting down in the chair across from the desk. She ran her fingers absentmindedly through her damp hair, trying to get some of the knots out of it. "Is something wrong?"

"No, not at all. As you probably know, we've been having an influx of transfer students over the past few weeks, mostly freshman, and we're having trouble finding places to put them. Now, you're certainly not obligated, but we've been asking some of the upperclassmen who still live on campus to maybe consider finding an apartment in the city and giving up their dorms. Like I said, you do _not_ have to at all, it's just something to think about."

Eden bit her lip. She hated situations like this, because she knew she wouldn't be able to say no. She certainly didn't _want_ to move off campus. Though she loved her job, with the money she made, she wouldn't be able to find very great of a place to live.

But she was here on a scholarship. They didn't have to let her go to school here. This always nagged at the back of her mind.

"I don't mind at all, Anne. I'll start looking for an apartment tomorrow."

"You will?" asked Anne excitedly, then caught herself. "Eden, you don't have to rush into this decision. You can take some time to think about it."

"No, no. I've been thinking about moving off campus for a while now," she lied. "This is perfect."

"If you're sure..."

"I am. I'll let you know when I find something and I'm ready to move out. It shouldn't take too long. It's a big city." Eden gave Anne her fake smile, the one she kept on at all times while waiting tables at the diner. It never failed to make people believe you were happy.

As Eden returned to her dorm that night and prepared for bed, unsure of where to even _begin_ looking for an apartment, she found herself wondering vaguely where Dr. Cooper lived.


End file.
